RICKY BURNS has a new commandment: Thou shall not conquer Moses by pigging out on grub.

Scotland’s interim worldchampion last night admitted he is half a stone over the lightweight limit just seven weeks before he faces challenger Paulus Moses.

Now Burns has sworn off fried chicken and burgers as he bids to get himself in shape to polish off the Namibian before tucking into a mouthwatering Scotland v England clash with former British title-holder Kevin Mitchell.

The Coatbridge fighter confessed he fantasises about fast food ahead of weigh-ins but he said: “The countdown is on and that means Nando’s no more.

“My first priority is to start dieting. No matter what weight you have to make it’s hard work and I’m always strict with myself.

“It’s easier to make nine stone nine pounds than it is to come in five pounds lighter than that as a super-featherweight.

“But I need to get there and stay there to show that my personal discipline is the way it should be before I take on Moses.

“I’ve got seven or eight pounds to lose and seven weeks to get my mind and body right. I’d like to go into the ring as undisputed WBO champion but I’m still waiting to see if Juan Manuel Marquez is going to relinquish the world crown and move up to light-welterweight.

“Meanwhile, what I have to do is make sure I’m in the right condition to face Moses.”

Burns revealed he will go into the ring at Braehead on March 10 without ever having seen his opponent in action.

He has no plans to watch any footage of the man with 19 knock-outs on his record. The Scot, who outclassed Aussie Michael Katsidis in London last November, said: “I know what they say about failure to prepare having negative consequences but nine times out of 10 I work on instinct when I fight.

BLOCKBUSTER

“I can adapt to people’s styles and I’m sure when I get intothe ring I know what I need to do to win.”

But Burns’ trainer, Billy Nelson, does not believe in going into a fight blind.

He has a DVD of Moses, who has been beaten only once in 29 fights, and spends every night studying the challenger in action, looking for weaknesses Burns can exploit.

Nelson said: “I expect this fight to end in a stoppage because Ricky is coming to his peak.

“Then we have a blockbuster lined up against Kevin Mitchell for the summer and he’s going to get it from Ricky as well.”

A cross-border battle is a certain crowd-puller – but if Moses is to command an audience Nelson will have to be as good as his word when he predicts a premature end to the fight.

Burns said: “If I get the chance to take him out then I’ll do it.

“They say he’s 33 years old as if that was enough to vouch for the fact Moses is past his best but he’s not coming all this way if he’s not willing to give his all.

“I’d relish the chance to fight Mitchell anywhere after that.

“If we met north or south of the border it would be a big fight because I believe we’re the two best lightweights in the UK.

“But I have to give Moses 100 per cent focus or that fight won’t happen.

“My last two fights were outside Scotland so if I sell out Braehead I have a stronger case for fighting Mitchell up here instead of London.